The new headquarters for the Abu Dhabi Investment Council occupies a prominent site on the north shore of Abu Dhabi Island, overlooking the Eastern Mangroves and out towards Sadiyaat Island and the Arabian Gulf beyond.

The project comprises two 150m tall towers that share a common podium and a two-level basement for which Arup provided a range of engineering services, including structural, geotechnical, civil, MEP, fire, wind and façade.

The towers are overclad on the south, west and east elevations by a unique dynamic shading system, a modular ‘Mashrabiya’ that opens and closes to provide self-shading as the sun moves around the building. The system is predicted to reduce the solar energy entering the building by 20% and is one of a number of innovative measures to improve environmental performance and limit energy use. The project was designed in accordance with the US Green Building Council LEED rating system.

A large team of our specialists including acoustics, IT, specialist lighting, security and transport logistics consultants worked from various offices around the world to bring the best global knowledge to this project. They were managed and supported by a core team in Abu Dhabi.